Colonel Fitzwilliam's Dilemma (13 page)

“Are you suggesting you would take no interest in our friends’ romantic intentions if I asked for your help in running the estate?”

Lizzy waved a hand in vague agreement. “I would not give such matters another thought.”

Will’s deep, throaty chuckle echoed through the room. “Then let me seize the moment while your mind is still veering in that direction and ask you about Turner. The last time he was here, Kitty was depressed because he had been summoned by his father, who intended to marry him off to some suitable woman. What happened?”

“I have absolutely no idea.”

“Lizzy!”

She treated him to an innocent look. “But you have no interest in rumour and speculation.”

“On the contrary, I thrive on the latest
on dits
. Besides, I bear some responsibility for your sister’s welfare while she is under this roof, and I would not see her anticipation unnecessarily excited if nothing is to come of it.”

“My father was fond of telling us that next to being married, all young ladies enjoy being disappointed in love.”

“Your father spoke in jest.”

“Very possibly.”

“So will you enlighten me or leave me to guess?”

Lizzy laughed. “In other words you are as curious as I am but can’t bring yourself to admit it.” She lifted her head from its comfortable resting place on Will’s shoulder and placed a delicate kiss on his lips. “Very well, I will tell you what I know, which is precious little. I have not spoken to Captain Turner on the subject. It is really for him to discuss it with me if he feels the need. However, Kitty tells me he will not be marrying the lady his father chose for him. Whether he balked at the idea or the lady decided against the match, I cannot tell you since that is all Kitty knows herself.”

“Well that is encouraging I suppose. It is evident he enjoys Kitty’s society, and she his. Let us hope for a happy outcome.”

“Yes, by all means let’s hope for that. I want everyone to be as happy as we are.”

“I hesitate to spoil any pleasure of yours but I fear that would be impossible. No man could be as fortunate in his choice of a wife or as content in his marriage as I am, Lizzy.” His fingers played with the escaped curls at her nape. “I am sorry if that makes me sound selfish, but there’s no help for that.”

“Then I am selfish too. I feel exactly the same way and pity the rest of my sex since none of them are destined to be as happy as I am.”

Booted footsteps rang out on the tiled floor of the vestibule. Lizzy glanced over her shoulder, through the open doorway and saw a dishevelled Colonel Fitzwilliam there, watching them embrace with a pensive expression on his face.

“You look as though you were caught in the rain, Colonel,” she said, removing herself from Will’s arms. “Pray come and warm yourself in front of the fire and tell us about your morning.”

“Idle curiosity?” Will whispered, raising an ironic brow at her.

“I showed Mrs. Sheffield the folly,” he said, striding into the room and holding his hands out to the flames.

Lizzy shot her husband a triumphant smile. “It is not the best day to appreciate the view.”

“That is what I told Mrs. Sheffield.”

“But the weather did not detract from your enjoyment?” Lizzy asked, smiling.

“The weather did not,” the colonel replied, seating himself opposite Lizzy and Will, “but I am concerned about Mrs. Sheffield’s welfare.”

“Why?” Will asked.

Succinctly, the colonel outlined what he had learned of Mrs. Sheffield’s unhappy marriage and her disinclination to return to her own estate because her husband’s brother was in occupation of it.

“Something unpleasant happened in Jamaica,” the colonel said in summary, “but Mrs. Sheffield either does not know the full particulars or is unwilling to share them with a comparative stranger. Either way, I am willing to wager her husband did not die of a fever.”

“I got the impression she and Mr. Asquith are acquainted, even though they pretended otherwise,” Lizzy remarked.

“They do know one another, but that is all I could persuade Mrs. Sheffield to say.” The colonel frowned. “The lady is out of her depth, in danger of being cheated, and I’m damned if I will stand back and allow that to happen. Oh, I beg your pardon. Please excuse my language, Mrs. Darcy.”

“That’s perfectly all right, Colonel. I can see you are upset by the prospect, as I am. But what shall you do about it?”

Colonel Fitzwilliam ground his jaw. “I have not yet decided. Mrs. Sheffield’s solicitor calls to see her this afternoon. I myself am engaged to call upon her again tomorrow, when I shall endeavour to gain her confidence.”

“What of Lady Catherine, Fitzwilliam?” Will asked. “If you have definitely decided against Anne then you ought to tell her so and get the business out of the way.”

“I shall not marry Anne, regardless of how things develop between Mrs. Sheffield and myself. I had my doubts before, for her sake as much as my own, but now I am perfectly sure. But you are right, I ought to tell our aunt of my decision sooner rather than later.”

“Please let me know when you intend to do so, Colonel, and I shall make sure I am elsewhere,” Lizzy said, making them laugh and lightening the sombre mood.

“Are you absolutely sure, Fitzwilliam?” Will asked. “Think of the benefits.”

“Do you imagine I have not already done so? Lady Catherine has been dropping endless hints about her wishes ever since you and Mrs. Darcy married. I have had ample opportunity to reflect.” He paused to rub his chin in thoughtful contemplation. “If Anne was still the same frail, docile creature we are accustomed to seeing, with barely a word to say for herself, then I might well have gone ahead. But Asquith has had a very beneficial effect upon her and her personality has blossomed as a consequence. That changes everything.”

“That is certainly true,” Lizzy said. “I do not know her nearly as well as you and Will do but I can see remarkable changes in her as well.”

“Quite so. I don’t believe marriage to me would please her very much but she would go through with it for her mother’s sake if I was willing. I refuse to put her in that position.”

“But Lady Catherine will choose her husband however noble your intentions, Fitzwilliam. She could finish up with someone far less sympathetic to her feelings than you are.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t be so sure about that,” Lizzy said. “I have a feeling Anne de Bourgh is only just starting to realise she has a mind and will of her own.”

“God help us if Anne defies her mother too,” Will said, rolling his eyes.

“I don’t relish the idea of your aunt not having her way, but at the same time I do feel very strongly that Anne is entitled to have some say in her future.”

Will laughed. “Not all young ladies are as strong-minded as you are.”

“Then I feel very sorry for them.”

Their private conversation came to an end when Kitty and Georgiana joined them, laughing, faces flushed with excitement.

“How go the rehearsals?” Lizzy asked.

“I am Miss Dolores Downton,” Georgiana said with an exaggerated curtsey.

“And I am Miss Dorothea,” Kitty added, curtseying also.

“Anne is Daphne, and all three of us are enamoured of the same gentleman.”

“Then the poor gentleman has my sympathy,” Lizzy replied laughing.

“Save your sympathy, Lizzy, he is—”

“No, Kitty, you must not tell. It is to be a surprise.”

Lizzy shared a glance with Will. Neither of them had ever seen Georgiana quite so animated, or so quick to put herself forward before. It was clear Mr. Asquith’s theatrical production had the same effect upon her as his tutoring did upon Anne, causing both young ladies to feel less inhibited. Perhaps Lady Catherine knew what she was about after all. Then again she might have grossly underestimated her daughter’s reaction to the glamorous young man, thereby creating more difficulties than his presence solved.

“Ah, that it is,” Kitty agreed. “Do not ask me a single thing more about it, Lizzy, in case I forget myself and reveal all.”

Lizzy laughed. “Now I am really intrigued.”

“Mr. Asquith has us painting scenery,” Georgiana explained. “And we also have to remember our lines.”

“It’s exhausting,” Kitty added, throwing herself into the nearest chair.

“Then have the servants do it for you,” Will suggested.

“Oh no.” Georgiana shook her head. “Where would be the sense of achievement in that?”

“Well, it is almost time for luncheon,” Lizzy said, glancing at the clock and standing up. “I dare say a good meal will restore your energy.”

Chapter Ten

Torrential rain fell for the entire afternoon, but failed to dampen the spirits of Pemberley’s residents. The actors threw themselves wholeheartedly into the play and barely noticed the weather. Joshua passed the closed door to the ballroom and heard raucous laughter coming from within. To his considerable satisfaction, Lady Catherine had taken over chaperone duties from Mrs. Bingley.

“I insist upon knowing how the play ends,” he heard his aunt insist. “How can I be sure it is suitable for Anne to be involved with if I do not know the particulars?”

Joshua heard Asquith reply in a low voice but could not make out what he said.

“That is all very well, Mr. Asquith, but I do not see why Mrs. Bingley should know it all, yet I cannot be trusted with that information.” She paused briefly, permitting Asquith to speak. “Yes, yes, I understand she has been sworn to secrecy but I am well able to keep a secret myself.”

Having satisfied himself that Lady Catherine had no intention of leaving the ballroom, Joshua did not linger to hear how the matter was resolved. His aunt being otherwise engaged gave him a legitimate reason to delay telling her of his decision not to marry Anne. He strode away from the ballroom, thinking about Rosings. If he were to become master of such a rich estate, his future would be secure. He would also be in a position to help his ungrateful brother restore the Braithwaite estate to its former glory. Why the devil was he even hesitating?

A small part of his brain wondered if he had taken leave of his senses. He then thought of Darcy and the beneficial effect a happy marriage had had upon his character and temperament. The changes in his previously taciturn cousin’s demeanour were nothing short of remarkable. He thought also of Mrs. Sheffield and the instant attraction he had felt towards her the first moment he saw her. He had never known anything like it before. If Darcy’s wife stirred his passions as violently as Mrs. Sheffield affected Joshua’s, then he could understand why he had been prepared to shock society and disappoint his relations by marrying a lady some considered beneath him.

Not that Joshua was considering offering for Mrs. Sheffield, nor was she likely to accept him if he did, but the feelings she had engendered in him made it impossible to put financial expediency ahead of desire. He could survive on his army pay if need be. Money was not everything. He had nothing against Anne de Bourgh, but she was not in love with him and she deserved to find happiness every bit as much as Joshua himself did.

With his conscious salved, Joshua whiled away the afternoon with Darcy and Bingley in the billiards room, losing a modest sum to those gentlemen because he was unable to concentrate on the game. His thoughts were at Briar Hall instead. He wondered if Mrs. Sheffield’s solicitor had arrived and what possible business could have brought him all the way from London. It had to be more than a routine affair or he would have consigned it to writing. He knew Mrs. Sheffield was concerned about the impending visit, much as she tried to pretend otherwise. Joshua ground his jaw. When he saw her on the morrow, he would be at his most convincing and somehow persuade her to place her trust in him. Unless Joshua’s judgement had become severely impaired, she had never had greater need of a confidante or a reliable friend. For reasons of her own, he suspected she had not revealed the true nature of her difficulties to her sister and Lord Briar, affording Joshua the privilege of standing protector in their stead.

Dinner that evening was a cheerful affair with the players full of laughter at their afternoon’s efforts. Even Lady Catherine seemed to have picked up on their flamboyance and only made the occasional complaint about the folly of the production, wondering aloud why young people nowadays could not find a more seemly way to occupy their time.

“Anne is proving to have remarkable talent for acting,” she informed the rest of the diners. “You ought to have seen her, Fitzwilliam.”

“I would have been glad to watch, Lady Catherine,” Joshua replied, “but the door to the rehearsal room is barred to those of us not participating.”

“Acting is hardly a ladylike quality I would wish to encourage,” Lady Catherine continued. “But since she is determined to try it, and my daughter and niece are performing here at Pemberley for an audience of family and close friends only, I can see no harm in it.”

“No harm whatsoever,” Mr. Asquith agreed.

“Are you enjoying yourself, Anne?” Joshua asked.

“Actually I am, but Mama has greatly exaggerated my talents.”

“I am not given to exaggeration, child. I merely speak as I find.”

“Yes, Mama, but you are biased. I am not nearly so good as Georgiana and Kitty.”

Good heavens, Joshua thought. It was the first time he had ever heard Anne contradict her mother. Asquith was to be congratulated. Presumably it was he who had persuaded her to form opinions of her own, and he who had given her the courage to voice them.

“At least you remember your lines.” Kitty wrinkled her nose. “I have to be prompted all the time.”

“I would exchange a good memory for a louder voice,” Anne replied with feeling.

“Really, it does not in the least matter if your voices are too low or if any of you forget your lines,” Mrs. Darcy said, smiling at all the players. “It is only us who will be there to admire your performance and I am perfectly sure we shall find none of you wanting.”

Kitty laughed. “I shall remind you that you said that when I dry up.”

“Y-you will n-not forget your lines, M-Miss Bennet,” Captain Turner assured her. “I s-shall be glad to help you remember them and make sure y-you are w-word perfect.”